Why I Love Europeans

While I was stumping through the career blogosphere, I came across my favorite new Euro import idea:

(source)

Well the book isn't European, but the concept is.

Ummm...love you, Eueopeans! You give us cool things like French bread, Belgian beer, Spanish tapas, Italian gelato and CAREER BREAKS! By the way, I am fully aware that I just only menitoned food. Never blog when hungry!

So what is a career break? It can be anything from a "gap year for adults" (in the UK especially, post-high school teens will take a year to travel, volunteer or both after graduating from high school. That sounds dang fabulous too!). It's a time to travel; learn a new skill or hobby; return to school for more training or educational opportunities; or figuring out what you'd like to do next career-wise. Sound familiar?

Look, I recognize that I live in a country where four weeks of vacation is considered a luxury, but I truly hope this catches on here in the Good 'Ol U.S.A. As a matter of fact, we tend to shun gaps in a resume and often have to have an explanation at the ready for a prospective employer as to why we haven't lived in our offices or cubicles in months. There seems to be a stigma attached to stepping back and taking stock of our personal and professional lives.

While I love our go-g0 work culture, I think this attitude can be a disservice to workers.

If anything I wish we could change the culture of work in our country in order to make space for personal and professional growth. Maybe we would have less unfulfilled people like me having to search for their next gig. Hmmmm.....

Here are some great career break resources:

The Career Break Site

Career Break Cafe

Career Break Resources (international focus)

Briefcase to Backpack

While some of these have an travel abroad focus and are not really about career transition, I think they are still worth a look.

Have you considered a career break? What would it look like?